Golden Years
by Lady Doral
Summary: Ginny gets sent to the past during her sixth year and is given the task of changing her future. AU, LM/GW
1. Prologue: Close Up

The first time he noticed her was the day of the altercation between Arthur Weasley and himself. It was her eyes that he noticed; eyes that had haunted his dreams. Lucius felt his blood turn to ice at the mere sight of this eleven year old girl. His face was an emotionless mask, but underneath was rage that someone else was walking around with his Rhia's eyes. It was in that split second he decided to give the diary to her. As punishment for her likeness to Rhia.

Two years later, their paths crossed again. This time it was at the Quidditch World Cup. For a brief moment, their eyes locked. Hers were full of anger and rage, while his showed nothing more than mild disdain for her family. He had been the recipient of that look before, when he was at Hogwarts. He knew then that this child was her, and couldn't stop glancing at the youngest Weasley throughout the entire game.

That was when he'd made a vow to make sure no fatal harm would come to this girl. Lucius would intervene, whenever possible, on her behalf. That was his downfall at the Department on Mysteries. He tried to protect the girl, and fulfill his task from the Dark Lord. Not everything works in Lucius Malfoy's favor, though. That was how he was captured and then lost the trust of the Dark Lord. His days and nights in Azkaban were spent reminiscing over her, and when he was freed he went straight to his oldest confidante.

"The fates are taunting me, Severus," Lucius said, sitting on the couch in Severus' parlor.

"Lucius, if they are taunting you, then they are torturing me," he laughed. "I have watched her for the past five years. Her mannerisms, intellect; everything is the same. Especially her bat-bogey hex."

"How can it be her?" Lucius questioned while staring at the flames.

"I do not know, but if it truly is Rhia then we will know this year."

"I would not be so sure of that."

"I would, because Ginny Weasley will be sixteen this year. The same age as Rhiannon when she appeared in our lives," Severus said, downing his fire whiskey.

"You are right," Lucius smirked. "Do watch out for her this year, Severus. I know how the Carrows love to torture children."

"I will do my best, old friend. I'll keep you updated if anything seems to go wrong."

With that, Lucius apparated away, leaving Severus to stare at the photos on his mantle. All of them were of ancestors, except the one in the middle. That was of Lucius' wedding with Rhiannon. He stood behind her with his arms wrapped around her waist, and Severus stood next to them with Lily Evans in the exact same way. Three weeks after the photo had been taken, Rhiannon had disappeared. That was the last time any of them were happy. Severus threw his empty glass into the fireplace and stalked to his room.


	2. Chapter 1: All That I'm Living For

"Ow!" Hermione cried as Ginny tried to put a healing salve on her arms.

"Sorry Hermione," the younger girl grimaced, "but it's not like they were using a tickle charm on you. I can't believe they're getting away with this!"

"What does it matter? They can't kill me yet, so they're doing the next best thing," Hermione grumbled.

School had started on September the first, like usual. Only, Voldemort was in charge now. Ron and Harry had run off into hiding, while Hermione chose to return to Hogwarts with Ginny. Being Harry Potter's best friend had put a target on her back, and being muggleborn hadn't helped at all. She seemed to get the worst punishments from the Carrows than any other student in the school. At least this last "detention" hadn't landed her back in the hospital wing, again.

"You didn't have to come back here. You should have left instead of babysitting me," Ginny said, moving about Hermione's deserted dorm room.

"I couldn't leave you by yourself, Gin. I'll be better once I get back to the library."

Ginny smiled tightly, and then glanced at her watch. "We'd better go, or we'll be late for class."

"Thank you, Gin," the older girl said, hugging her friend before grabbing their bags and heading to their respective classes.

* * *

The atmosphere of the castle was very subdued. Everyone kept their heads down while they walked, trying to become as insignificant as possible. Even the Slytherins had a very somber air about them. The first years that Ginny occasionally passed seemed to have the same frightful expression upon their faces. She felt sorry for them, and for anyone who seemed to catch the Carrows' eyes. More than once, the older Gryffindors had to help heal wounds for the younger ones after their detentions. What hurt Ginny the most was all of her friends that hadn't come back this year.

While she pondered over the fates of her missing friends and family, she bumped into a very solid, warm something. If it hadn't been for the mystery person grabbing her arms to keep her steady, she surely would have fallen. As she looked up to apologize, she realized that she was standing face to face with Lucius Malfoy. Her face hardened the second this realization hit, but he didn't seem to notice her sour disposition. Instead, he gave her his most charming smile.

"You must be careful to look where you're walking, Miss Weasley. These are very dangerous times," he said, releasing his hold on her.

"You would be the one to know, sir," Ginny gritted out.

"Miss Weasley, you should learn to treat the guests of this school with more respect," a silky voice said behind her.

She turned around to find Headmaster Snape standing a foot or so away with his arms crossed in front of him. "I apologize for my rudeness, Headmaster." _Headmaster my arse! The evil, double-crossing traitor!_ She mused.

"While as entertaining as this is, Severus, I believe we should let the girl get to class," Lucius smirked. "Wouldn't want her getting a detention with the Carrows, now would we?"

"Of course not," came the dry reply.

With that, Ginny turned down the staircase leading to the dungeon. Once she was out of sight of the two men, she broke into a run and didn't stop until she got to the door of the potions classroom.

* * *

Ginny headed straight to the library after Herbology, her last class of the day. She found Hermione near the back of the vast room surrounded by stacks of books. The red head shook her head and rolled her eyes. '_At least some things never change_,' she thought grimly.

"Hi Ginny," Hermione said, looking up from her school work. Noticing the other girl's troubled expression she asked, "What's on your mind?"

Ginny dropped into a chair next to Hermione. After casting a wary glance around, she launched into her morning's run in with Malfoy Sr. and Snape.

"Ginny! You can't let your anger get the best of you! Especially with everyone we know risking their lives," the brunette scolded. "I can't believe _he_ didn't give you a detention on the spot!"

"I thought for sure he would. It's strange, though. Malfoy wasn't cruel to me, and he even caught me so I wouldn't fall."

Hermione looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, "That is strange. I need to finish this essay before dinner, but we'll talk more about this later."

"Okay. I'm going to the common room and talk to Neville. See you," Ginny said, grabbing her bag and heading out of the library.

As Ginny walked through the corridors back to Gryffindor tower, she continued to replay that morning's events. It had been the only thing she could focus on all day. The possibility of a Malfoy being kind to her was puzzling to the poor girl. Not just any Malfoy, either, but Lucius Malfoy! She was walking in a daze, just allowing her feet to steer her to the tower.

"Well, well, sister. Look what we have here. A poor, blood traitorous lion on her own," the gruff voice of Amycus Carrow called out from in front of her, stopping Ginny in her tracks.

"And a Weasley at that," Alecto said in her shrill voice.

Ginny looked up at her two 'professors' and clenched her wand in her hand. She knew what these two were capable of, and had helped heal her housemates many times in the past month. They seemed to relish in torturing children, but she was prepared. Ginny wasn't going to let them get away with attacking her.

Amycus sneered at her, "Let's teach her a lesson. Crucio!"

Ginny dodged the curse easily. Training with the DA last year had really paid off for her. She fired a stunning spell and caught Amycus in the middle of his chest. She didn't waste any time, turning on her heel and running down the corridor.

"You little bitch!" Alecto screeched before taking off in pursuit.

The stout woman kept on Ginny, throwing hexes and curses at her. Ginny fired back as often as she could while running through different corridors and down stairs. She kept trying to lose the older woman, but Alecto was persistent in her pursuit. As she turned down one corridor, near the dungeons, she felt a sharp, hot pain hit her in the back. Ginny staggered a couple steps, knocking into a door. She screamed out in pain before everything went black.

* * *

Hermione walked into the Great Hall, scanning the room for Ginny. When she didn't see the trademark Weasley hair in the crowd she walked straight over to Neville and sat next to him. Neville had been sitting quietly, face drawn in worry and pushing the food around on his plate. He looked up as Hermione sat next to him, before looking around.

"Hi, Hermione, Have you seen Ginny today?" Neville asked, hope shining in his eyes.

"About an hour ago while I was in the library finishing my potions essay," Hermione said, looking at him with dread. "She was headed to the common room to look for you."

"I never saw her, and I've been there since my last class," Neville replied slowly.

"That's not possible." She turned to the other Gryffindors and raised her voice, "Has anyone seen Ginny tonight?"

The response was many shaking heads, and murmurs of 'not since our last class.' Hermione turned back to Neville, both with similar looks of fear and worry clearly written on their faces. They both stood up, dinner completely forgotten, and raced out of the hall.

* * *

At the Head Table, Severus Snape had been waiting anxiously for Ginny to arrive. When the Granger girl came in without the red head he started to worry that the Carrows had gotten hold of her, since they were missing as well. _Granger seems to have the same idea,_ he thought when she and Neville raced out of the hall to go looking for the missing girl.

A few moments later, the Carrows burst in the doors. Alecto was breathing heavily while her brother had a dark look on his face. Both approached the Head Table, glaring at everyone who dared to catch their eyes.

"What is the meaning of this?" Severus sneered.

"Headmaster," Alecto started, "the Weasley girl vanished!"

"She attacked us, completely unprovoked. When we went to retaliate she fled from us," Amycus said.

"I chased after her, and as soon as I was about to grab her she just disappeared," Alecto said.

"People do not just vanish within Hogwarts; especially not in a corridor," Severus glared.

"She did! I know it wasn't apparation because of the spells on the castle, but she just disappeared. I saw it with my own two eyes!" Alecto cried.

"Maybe you should get your eyes checked, then," Severus retorted. He put up a hand when both opened their mouths, and stood. "However, I will go and look into it."

Severus left the Great Hall, and headed to his chambers to floo Lucius. He had already set up the guest room in his quarters, and knew Lucius would want to stay in the castle until Rhiannon would reappear. He had a tight smile on his face, knowing what would happen in the past and how it would change the girl's life forever.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy, head boy, was heading to breakfast with Severus Snape and the rest of his 'friends'. The rounded a corner, and saw a red headed figure lying motionless in the doorway of an unused classroom. He walked over to check her pulse before ordering them to get the Headmaster. Lucius scooped the girl up in his arms to take her to the hospital wing, while Severus followed, carrying his bag.

"What do you think, Lucius?" Severus questioned.

"I'm not sure, Severus. I've never seen her before in school," Lucius replied.

"I wonder who she is," Severus said.

Lucius looked down into the face of the girl, who seemed to merely be asleep. Her face scrunched up in pain when they started up the stairs to the hospital wing. _I wonder who she is, too,_ Lucius thought as they approached the doors and Severus called out for Madam Pomfrey.


	3. Chapter 2: Rhiannon

**Disclaimer: I own nothing (except for my copies of the books), and I'm certainly not making any money off of this. (^_^**)

* * *

"This doesn't make any sense, Albus," The voice of Madam Pomfrey floated through the darkness of Ginny's mind.

"My dear Poppy, sometimes the greatest things in life don't make the slightest bit of sense," Dumbledore replied.

_I must be in the hospital wing,_ thought Ginny. _I wonder what happened to make Dumble-wait!_ Ginny's eyes suddenly popped open, and she sat straight up in the hospital bed. For a long moment she stared at the two people standing at the end of her bed.

"Professor Dumbledore?" she asked.

"Yes, my girl?" Dumbledore smiled, turning to the unknown girl.

"You're alive!" Ginny exclaimed, jumping out of the bed and hugging him.

Dumbledore laughed and hugged her back. "I would surely hope I am. Since you seem to know me, might I ask who you are?"

Ginny took a step back from him saying, "Who I am?"

"Why, yes. You've seemed to have appeared out of thin air, and everyone has been most curious about you since you were found this morning by our Head Boy."

"Sir, would you mind if I asked the date?" Ginny asked, looking around at the familiar room.

"Of course, my dear, it is September 10th, 1976," he replied, eyes twinkling.

Ginny's features turned to shock. _I've traveled twenty years into the past! How is this even possible?_, she thought before fainting.

Dumbledore caught her with a spell before she hit the ground and laid her on the bed. He stared sadly at the red head.

"What kind of a shock would make the girl faint?" Pomfrey questioned, running a diagnostic spell over the girl.

"A shock of finding yourself in the past would certainly do that to one," the Headmaster replied calmly.

"Are you sure, Albus?"

"The curious thing is that she's wearing school robes, but isn't affiliated with any house," he said, staring at her uniform that lacked any hint of house colors.

"When she wakes up, I'll send her to your office," Pomfrey told him.

"Yes, I must tend to certain things. Good day Madam Pomfrey," Dumbledore said before sweeping out of the wing.

Madam Pomfrey took one last look at her patient, sighing. "You poor thing. I hope there's a reason for you to be here, because I can already tell you've been through so much."

* * *

The common room was buzzing with noise when Hermione and Neville returned from their search.

"What's going on?" Hermione asked Lavender as she sat in one of the armchairs.

"Right after you two ran out of the Great Hall, the Carrows came in," Lavender said. "The hag said that Ginny attacked them, and then disappeared on the spot!"

"That's impossible!" Hermione exclaimed.

Lavender and Seamus grinned at each other. Hermione saw the exchange between the two.

"What?" she asked.

"That's the same thing Snape said before he left the Great Hall. He said he was going to check into it, but the Carrows never said _where_ she was when she disappeared," Seamus said.

"He might know something? Like it might be…_him_?" Hermione asked, her stomach turning to lead.

"We don't know! All we know is that he left to 'look into it' when he didn't even know where the 'it' was," Parvati piped up.

"That doesn't make sense," Neville said. "Maybe she's hiding out and she'll show back up tomorrow."

Hermione's face was skeptical, but agreed and headed to her room. She lay on her bed and stared at the curtains. Already knowing that sleep would not come for her that night, she pulled out _Hogwarts: A History_ and began to read. It was late into the night, and she was half-dazed still reading when something on the page caught her attention. A little footnote that she was sure hadn't been there before. She shot straight up in bed, grabbed a piece of parchment and jotted the information. A visit to the library tomorrow morning would certainly be in order.

* * *

Ginny's hand rose to knock on the door to the Headmaster's office when it opened on its own accord. Hesitantly, she walked in and looked around. Nothing seemed to have changed from the last time she had been in there during her fourth year. Fawkes was on his perch behind the desk and started to sing a low tune when he saw her. She took a seat in one of the overstuffed chairs, fidgeting a little. The phoenix glided over and made himself comfortable on her lap.

"He seems to be quite taken with you," Dumbledore said upon entering through a door to her left.

"He always did seem to like me," Ginny replied, stroking the bird's feathers.

"Now, Miss…" Dumbledore trailed off.

"Weasley, sir. Ginny Weasley," she said.

"Weasley? Are you any relation to Arthur Weasley?"

"Yes, sir. I'm his daughter…at least, I will be," she smiled nervously.

Albus leaned back in his chair and looked at her over the top of his glasses. "How did you come to be here, Miss Weasley?"

"I'm not sure, sir. I was heading to the Gryffindor common room from the library when I was attacked. I tried to defend myself, and then ran. I was hit by a spell, and then I woke up here," she told him.

"Was it another student who attacked you?"

"No, sir. It was two of the new professors. I'm coming from a war torn country that just lost the greatest wizard it's ever known," she replied sadly.

Albus sat up and grabbed a piece of parchment and quill before addressing her. "Since you have been brought to us for unknown reasons perhaps you were sent here to change the future. After all, this has already happened in your time. Time-travel is a very confusing thing, and is not to be entered into lightly. Although, you seem to be a victim in all this," he smiled reassuringly.

"How am I supposed to change the future when I don't have a clue about what to do? I've only just turned sixteen and now I have the power to change the future," Ginny grumbled.

Dumbledore laughed, "The best thing is to be true to yourself. For now, we will need to make a new history and get you sorted since you don't seem to be affiliated with any house."

Ginny looked down at her clothes, and noticed that her tie and Gryffindor emblem were gone from her outfit. _That's strange,_ she thought. Dumbledore levitated the sorting hat off the top of the bookcase, and on to Ginny's head. She felt like a first year all over again.

"What do we have here? A girl from the future, eh?" the hat's voice questioned within her mind. "I sorted you into Gryffindor before, but time has certainly changed you. The castle brought you here, Miss Weasley. It has great plans for you."

_How is that possible? _she thought.

"The castle is much more than just a building, and it has sent you here to change your future. Your loyalty and bravery have helped you out before, but here your new found traits will get you through. My decision today will prepare you for whenever you are sent to your future. Good luck, though I know you'll succeed here."

"Slytherin!" the hat shouted.

She was shocked at the hat's decision, but Dumbledore simply levitated the hat back to its place and gave Fawkes a slip of paper whom quickly disappeared and reappeared.

"I'm sure you will do fine in Slytherin. It shows how time changes ones self. I've just sent for the Head Boy to escort you to the dungeons. Please tell me a little of what has gone on in your life," Dumbledore smiled.

"Well, my parents were killed when I was ten. I went to live with Aunt Rose in America. I became sick just after starting my first year at Salem Institute, and we'd heard that Professor Slughorn might have found a cure to the disease. That's why I've moved back. I'm sure you got all of my transcripts, sir?" she replied.

"Of course. Do not be afraid of your dreams. It's a slight side effect of Professor Slughorn's potion Madam Pomfrey gave you while unconscious. They shall go away after some time. Ah! There is our Head Boy," he said, opening the door with his wand before anyone had even knocked.

In the doorway stood a tall, muscular young man with long platinum blond hair. He walked gracefully into the room and up to the desk. The red head could not keep her eyes off of him. He cast a sideways glance at her before focusing his attention on the headmaster.

"You wanted to see me, sir?" he said in a deep voice.

"Mr. Malfoy, I would like to escort your newest housemate to the Slytherin dorms," he said, his eyes twinkling.

"Of course, sir," he said, turning and heading to the door.

"Don't worry, my dear. You'll find everything you need in your rooms. Good evening," Albus said as the young woman got up to follow Lucius.

"Thank you, Headmaster," she smiled.

As the pair left his office and entered the corridor, Lucius turned to her. "It's nice to see you're awake finally," he smiled. "I'm Lucius Malfoy, Head Boy and seeker for the quidditch team."

"It's nice to meet you, Lucius, but what do you mean when you say it's nice that I'm awake finally?" she questioned.

"I was the one who found you in the dungeons two days ago," he smiled.

"You were? Thank you! You saved my life when you found me," she beamed. "I'm Rhiannon Tudor."

"Well, Rhiannon, I hope you're around long enough just in case I might need saving," Lucius purred.

With that the two headed to the dungeons with Lucius filling her in on what to expect from their housemates. Albus Dumbledore watched the exchange with interest from his office.

"Do not worry, Albus," the sorting hat said. "The castle knows what she's doing."

"I do hope you're right, but you know how opposed I am to meddling with someone's mind," Albus said before retiring to his rooms for the night.

* * *

A/N: Expect the next chapter sometime next week. RL is about to get even more stressful than normal. Thanks go out to my two reviewers: cosmogurl and xfictionfanx! You guys really made my day!

Counting Bodies should be getting another chapter around the 19th. Thanks to all who've been patiently waiting. It killed me to leave my computer when I moved, but no worries it'll be here soon! ^_^

Please review, cuz that makes my day so much better!


	4. Chapter 3: Nightmares & the Giant Squid

_A/N: Thanks to everyone that's commented and added this story to their faves and alerts! Here's the latest and greatest chapter. Hope you enjoy! Hopefully I'll have the next chapter out by Friday next week. If you noticed, I did change the rating to M for a mild rape scene in this chapter. Wasn't expecting it so soon, but I knew eventually it'd go to M anyway.  
_

_Disclaimer: I don't own them, I just play with them for my own amusement._

* * *

Rhiannon woke from another nightmare. She lay in her bed panting and pushed her red hair off her sweaty forehead. She checked the time on her wristwatch, which read 4:45am, and decided to get up for the day. As quietly as was possible, the young woman gathered her toiletries and snuck across the hall to the sixth year girls' lavatory.

She'd only been there for a week, and she knew already that she love being in Slytherin. The other girls in her dorm were just starting to warm up to her, and she to them. She loved the daytime, only because nightmares plagued her whenever she closed her eyes. Rhiannon shivered under the hot water as she replayed the most recent nightmare.

_She was lying on a damp stone floor and felt extremely weak. The rhythmic 'drip-drip' of water echoed somewhere in the distance. A felling of hopelessness and fear washed over her, threatening to overpower her and she gasped for air. It was then that she heard footsteps coming closer to her. Her body was too weak to move, and all she wanted was to close her eyes and just fade away. _

_A deep chuckle tore through the silence before saying, "Poor little Ginny. Always in the shadow of others, but that won't be for long. Soon you will be known as the little girl who helped me come back to power. Then, I'll kill your little friend, Potter."_

_Suddenly, a young man of seventeen was standing over her. Under different circumstances she might have thought him to be most handsome. He had wavy dark brown hair with matching brown eyes that were filled with malice. She started to cry as he knelt next to her and started to play with the buttons on her blouse._

_"Didn't your mummy and daddy ever tell you not to speak to strange things?" he smiled, baring all his teeth. "I guess I'll just have to teach you a lesson about that," the boy said as he reached down and pull her legs apart before repositioning himself between them._

_She tried to move her legs back, but her body felt like dead weight. Rhia felt him lift her skirt before pulling her panties down chuckling and muttering to his self the entire time. Then she felt him at her opening. His eyes locked with hers, and she felt his hatred and sadistic excitement mingling with her fear._

_"I want to feel this as you feel it," he told her before he pushed himself into her._

_Rhia felt a blinding pain start in her groin and travel throughout her body. Her tears blurred her vision as each thrust from him sent another wave of pain through her. She could smell her blood, and feel his excitement at it. He laughed during all of it, and when he was done he cleaned them both up and replaced her panties. _

_He stood up and sneered, "I always enjoyed taking virgins, and your mental screams were tantalizing. Wish we could do it again, but you must die for me to live. Think of this as a parting gift from me. Crucio!"_

There was a knock at the door which tore Rhiannon out of her thought. Once again she was shaking just from the thought of this man. She was repulsed by what this poor young Ginny had gone through that night. She turned the shower off, and stepped out.

"Hey, new girl! You fall in?" a voice called through the door.

"I'll be out in a minute," Rhiannon called back, drying off and getting her uniform on.

She opened the door and was greeted by the sight of two of her roommates. The taller of the two had shoulder-length dark brown hair, large hazel eyes, olive skin and a muscular build. The shorter one seemed to be the polar opposite with blond hair, ice blue eyes, pale skin, and a more fragile looking build. The blond was glaring at Rhiannon, while the brunette just looked bored.

"Thought you might have drowned in there. Was about to send Cissy in to come after you," the brunette said.

Rhia smirked before saying, "I wouldn't have taken so long, but the Bloody Baron decided to come for a show so I gave him one."

The three looked at each other for a moment before breaking into giggles. "That is not a mental picture I want to have," Cissy said.

"I'm Ophelia Dippet, and this is Narcissa Black. Everyone calls her Cissy, though," the brunette said.

"I'm Rhiannon Tudor, but you can call me Rhia," she smiled.

"Why don't you wait for us in the common room, and join us for breakfast," Ophelia offered.

"Sounds good," Rhia said before walking into their room and grabbing her books.

The common room was deserted except for one boy who was seated on a couch reading a book. He had long, lanky black hair and a very large nose. Deciding to make another new friend, she walked over to the couch and sat down.

"Hi, I'm Rhia," she smiled.

The boy glared at her, "And?"

Rhia frowned, "Nothing. I was just trying to be friendly."

"Severus, you should be kinder to our newest housemate," Lucius Malfoy said from behind her. Rhia turned to face him and smiled. "Good morning Rhia. My apologies for Severus, he's not very sociable. Let me introduce Ian Pritchard and Jackson Avery," he said, gesturing to two handsome boys standing behind him.

Ian had very tan skin color with sandy blond hair, green eyes, and had a body built for a beater. He smiled and bowed by way of greeting. Jackson was dark skinned with dreadlocks and dark brown eyes. He came forward and kissed Rhia's hand.

"It's nice to meet you both. Are you seventh years as well?"

"No, just Lucius and I are. Jack's in sixth year like you, and Severus is a fifth year," Ian said.

"Would you care to join us for breakfast," Lucius charmingly asked.

"That would be lovely, Lucius, but I'm waiting for Ophelia and Narcissa."

"We'll see you up there, then," Lucius smirked before the four boys left.

Not long after their departure Ophelia and Narcissa appeared from their corridor, and gestured for her to follow them. Their walk to the Great Hall was full of the normal 'get to know you' discussion. As they made their way to the Slytherin table, Rhia took in the three empty seats left. On one side of the table was an empty seat between Severus and Jack, on the other side was two empty seats between Lucius and Ian. Rhia rolled her eyes as Narcissa sat next to Jackson and Ophelia next to Ian leaving the only available seat next to Lucius.

Lucius turned to her as she sat down and put on his most charming smile, "Hello again."

"Hello, Lucius," Rhia replied as she started to fill her plate.

"I can't help but be curious about what you think of Hogwarts so far, and most notably about Slytherin house," Lucius silkily asked.

"I like it a lot, actually. Especially the Bloody Baron," she joked, causing Narcissa and Ophelia to giggle.

"And what is your opinion of your housemates? Anyone you've taken an interest in?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Leave the girl alone, Lucius! She's only just arrived," Narcissa scolded.

"You'll have to forgive our friend, Rhia. He seems to think that he's the most attractive man in the UK," Ian joked.

"Of course he's wrong, since that title obviously belongs to you," Ophelia laughed.

"I can already tell that Rhia wants me," Ian smugly said, winking at her.

"And here I thought I was hiding it so well," she commented, her voice full of sarcasm. "I guess I'll have to go with my second choice since you're obviously taken."

Lucius asked innocently, "Who might that be?"

Rhia turned to look at him and said quite serious, "The giant squid, of course."

That sent the whole group over the edge. All were laughing, except for Lucius who glared at her before standing. He gestured to the other boys and said, "We had better be going if we don't want to be late."

Ian and Jack shot an apologetic look at the girls as they followed Lucius out of the hall. Rhia turned to the girls saying, "I hope I haven't really angered him."

Narcissa gave her a reassuring smile, "The only thing you've done is hurt his over-inflated ego. I'm sure he'll recover, so don't worry your pretty little red head."

"You should prepare yourself, though," warned Ophelia.

"Why's that?" Rhia asked as they left the hall on the way to their first class of the day.

"No one's ever spoken to him like that before us-"

"Except for us, but we've known each other since we were kids," Narcissa cut in.

"So we don't exactly count, but you don't know anything about him. What I'm trying to say is don't be surprised if he tries to pursue you," Ophelia said as they entered the Transfiguration classroom.

"Just what I wanted to happen within the first three days of being here," scowled Rhia while the other two just smirked.

* * *

Later that night in the common room the three girls sat around a table attempting to do their homework. However, there was more laughing than working going on. Ian, Jackson, and Lucius came in from their rounds and joined the girls at their table.

"What could possibly be so funny that would turn our very sophisticated and normally quiet girlfriends into rowdy first years?" Jackson asked.

"Rhia was just informing us of her wild date earlier this evening with the giant squid," Ophelia choked out before giving into another fit of laughter.

"If that's all you three have to talk about, then I'll leave you to it," glared Lucius before getting up and walking to the other side of the room.

He stopped next to a couch where four seventh year girls were sitting. The girls smiled prettily at him as he bent over and whispered into one girl's ear. She had long raven hair, violet eyes, and very busty. Rhia could tell that the girl had no problem getting a boyfriend as she smiled seductively at Lucius' whispered comment. She didn't even look back at her friends as she stood and followed Lucius towards his room. The couple didn't turn to look at their as they disappeared down the hall.

"Who was that?" Rhia asked, turning her attention back on her essay.

"Veronica Smethley," Ophelia answered, rolling her eyes.

"She's the resident slut of Slytherin, and is in love with Lucius," Jackson said.

"She's more in love with his name and money than anything else," Cissy corrected.

Ian winked at Rhia, "He must be desperate if he's been left to her. No worries, though. Our dear Lucius is just trying to make you jealous, Rhia."

Rhia rolled her eyes, "Why should I care who he beds? I'm not looking to be his girlfriend. I'll see you all in the morning. I need sleep if I want to get a decent grade in potions tomorrow."

As soon as she was out of sight Ophelia said to the others, "She definitely likes him. I noticed that she would have a worried expression whenever she thought no one was looking."

"Lucius wouldn't shut up about her all day. It's worse now than before we decided to see if they were compatible," Ian commented.

"From what I can tell, she's as stubborn as he is. She won't openly admit it, but I think it'll do him good to get knocked off his pedestal," Narcissa chimed in.

"It's definitely not going to be easy now with Vermin in the picture, but that might give her a chance to prove herself to him," Jackson offered.

"Why don't we take a bet on the eventual fight between the lovely red head and the slut?" Ian joked.

"I got Rhia," Ophelia and Narcissa said at the same time.

"I'm with them," Jackson said. "You haven't seen her in class. The girl is very powerful. I'm almost wondering if _he_ wouldn't want to recruit her."

The four sat quietly for a moment before Ophelia said, "Let's get back to work. I have an outline that needs to be done by tomorrow, and I need to get started on my essays before this weekend so I can go to quidditch tryouts."


End file.
